Extra Credit

Memorial for Nash Elementary principal set for Sunday afternoon at TCC

Update: the service is scheduled to include remarks from schools officials and students as well as a song by children. The location is: Trinity Building, fourth floor, TRTR 4202. Here's a link for a map.  

Friends, family and coworkers will gather on Sunday to remember Pamela Hsiu Lo Day, principal at Nash Elementary School in Fort Worth, who passed away on April 7. She was 62.

The family is hosting a public memorial service from 1 to 3 p.m. on April 28 in the auditorium of the Tarrant County College's Trinity River Campus in downtown Fort Worth, according to a school district news release.

Mrs. Day was Nash Elementary School principal for 13 years and previously was principal at Sam Rosen Elementary, assistant principal at Manuel Jara Elementary and also taught at Diamond Hill Elementary. She worked at Fort Worth ISD for 23 years. Here's a photo gallery on the Fort Worth ISD's website of an April 11 candlelight vigil in her memory. 

Mrs. Day died of complications of cancer, according to her obituary on Star-Telegram.com.

Here's more about Mrs. Day's work at Nash Elementary: "During that time, she came to think of the staff and the faculty as family, and the kids in the school as an extension of her own family. She cared deeply for the welfare and well-being of her students and her teachers. Nash achieved exemplary status during statewide accountability reports several times during her tenure, and she always put the credit on her teachers' and students' shoulders, saying that she was merely a guide to help them find their way," the obituary states. "Pamela loved practical jokes, and her staff at Nash Elementary was often on the receiving end."

Jessamy Brown

Fort Worth schools JROTC lead ceremonies to remember victims of 9-11 attacks

Update: The school district has posted photos from several 9-11 observance events at campus flag poles on Tuesday.

• Eastern Hills High here.
• Trimble Tech High here.
• Wedgwood Middle School here.

Original Post:

High school and university students across North Texas remembered those who died during the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on Tuesday.

Many schools held flag pole ceremonies to mark the 11th anniversary. Students at Fort Worth's Daggett Middle School made signs for their ceremony (photo below).

Here's a Star-Telegram gallery of photos from Tuesday. And watch a video here, from Fort Worth ISD, on the observance at North Side High School. "The school's JROTC Honor Guard raised the flag, the National Anthem was sung by the North Side High School choir, and a wreath was laid by the principal and JROTC cadre," the school district said in a news release.

-Diane Smith

Fort Worth schools trustee to rappel 20 stories down Chesapeake Plaza Building

Tobi Jackson is in training.

To prepare for a Sept. 15 event in which the Fort Worth schools trustee plans to rappel 20 stories down the Chesapeake Plaza Building, Jackson is working out every day, with some training at Eastern Hills High School's fitness center.

"I'm doing two-a-days. I'm repelling and I'm doing weight lifting," she said in an interview. "I'm on a little diet."

Her effort is all to raise money for the Eastern Hills Fire Science Academy (Jackson's personal fundraising page is here. The entry fee was covered by a sponsor, she said). Fire science majors at the campus can learn how to control and investigate fires and perform rescues. The program, open to all Fort Worth students, is run in partnership with Tarrant County College Northwest and Fort Worth Fire Department, the school district says. (right: Fire science student Ty Sims. Courtesy Tobi Jackson)

The event is part of Downtown Fort Worth Inc.'s Over the Edge in Downtown Fort Worth program.It starts at 9:30 a.m. on Sept. 15 at 100 Energy Way.

Jessamy Brown

 

TCC trustees start reviewing 2012-2013 budget wish list

A recent budget workshop for TCC board trustees covered a number of projects and programs, including a proposed multi million Alliance Learning Center that would help prepare more workers for jobs in aviation, aerospace and logistics. (See the Star-Telegram's coverage.)

TCC appears focused on improving student success with efforts to add more programs to help students in developmental math, reading or writing. (See recent story about TCC's efforts to improve developmental math instruction.)

TCC administrators are requesting funding for student success efforts such as a mentoring program for Men of Color and establishing a Math Emporium and math boot camp at the Northwest Campus.

Trustees also got a glimpse of  how classrooms may look in 2030 - a preview of an institutional plan that is in the works. Imagine CSI: Crime Scene Investigation meets English 101 with glass monitors that students touch to research online. Picture more open spaces that allow students to reshuffle tables, desks and chairs as they discuss lessons.

If you want to find out more, you can watch the video.

-Diane Smith

 

State grant dollars helped equip TCC's new downtown campus

 

TCC Nursing students train in a hospital setting.

 (Photo from Star-Telegram archives)

 

Texas Comptroller Susan Combs witnessed state grant dollars in action during a visit to the Trinity River East Campus. Nursing students train at the Learning In Virtual Environment - replicated hospital rooms with computerized manikins - purchased with the help of state dollars.

A $276,494 grant helped pay for some of the computerized "patients" that allow nurses to practice procedures. Among the manikins are some that replicate a mother, a newborn and a 5-year-old child.

The 148,000-square-foot center, at Belknap and Calhoun streets, is used by students concentrating on health professions such as nursing, physical therapy, respiratory care and radiology.

"Fantastic," Combs said of the TCC facility. "Absolutely, overwhelmingly fantastic."

The grant money is part of the state's Jobs and Education for Texans (JET) funds. That money aims to help fill the need for skilled workers in key area such as health care. In the last two years, $10 million in grants to fund training equipment have been awarded to 39 college districts.

To find out more: http://everychanceeverytexan.org

-Diane Smith

 

Texas education leaders bracing for tough budget cuts

The first draft of the state's budget came out this week, and education leaders say it doesn't look good for them. Under the proposed plan, future college students couldn't tap state financial aid and four state community colleges would close as higher education would take a $1.7 billion hit.

But the hardest hit could be Texas public schools, which could lose $5 billion in funds. The Legislative Budget Board recommends eliminating funds that help pay for pre-kindergarten, arts education, teacher incentive pay and technology. School leaders fear that will also translate to job cuts. The plan could force a school finance reform show down as the LBB recommends cutting districts' funds by 14 percent and districts at the low end of "target revenue," such as Fort Worth and Crowley, have vowed to fight. (Target revenue is the per-pupil amount of state funding schools get that is different for each district.)

Fort Worth officials have said the recommended cuts would mean about a $75-80 million loss for the district, which could likely mean job cuts. Additionally, the cut in teacher incentives could drastically affect the district's PEAK program, which offers sign-on and performance bonuses aimed at getting the best teachers to the district's most struggling schools. Officials have credited dramatic gains at those schools to the PEAK program. But losing $4.8 million in state aid is a big hit, chief financial officer Hank Johnson said. He said Fort Worth could try using federal funds to make up for it, but those monies have different rules and standards attached that the district will have to research.

Keller recently opened a new early childhood center that serves 3- and 4-year-olds. Officials there said the loss of pre-kindergarten funds would not affect their program. However, other districts have said they may have to consider cutting back to half-day classes or reduce offerings if the LBB recommendations go through. Keller officials are worried what a loss of technology funds would mean to them.

-Eva-Marie Ayala

TCC Chancellor is recognized as an outstanding Texas woman

TCC Chancellor Erma Johnson Hadley was selected to the Texas Women's Hall of Fame. The award was created in 1984 by the Governor's Commission for Women to recognize outstanding Texas women. Hadley was one of five inductees Monday to the Texas Women's Hall of Fame. A ceremony took place Monday at TWU's Denton campus.

Hadley was recently chosen chancellor of TCC and is the first woman and African American to sit in this post. Gov. Rick Perry and Anita Perry presented the award.

 TWU Photo by: Shannon Drawe

King of Uganda visits Tarrant County College

King Oyo, the world's youngest king visited TCC's Trinity River campus this week. He learned about the college during his visit, including the College For Kids program. The 18-year-old king has been visiting North Texas to learn about the state. To find out more about his visit, read this recent Star-Telegram article.

_Diane Smith

Photo by DeeDra Parrish

College students to share insights

Have a student headed to college? Want them to hear what it's really like? Hit Arlington's Central Library from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Aug. 3. 

Students from the University of Texas at Arlington, Vanderbilt University, Texas Christian University, Tarrant County College and others will share their insights during CollegeSpeak, an interactive panel discussion.

E-mail library teen intern Bennett Parsons with questions.

- Traci Shurley

Area educators named Best of Texas for dropout prevention work

Two top area educators have been honored with Best of Texas awards from Communities in Schools.

Communities in Schools is a dropout prevention program administered by the Texas Education Agency.

Deborah Merki, principal of Roanoke Elementary School in Northwest school district is the program's principal of the year. The group said Merki emphasizes the value of parents, promoted college awareness and implemented a Latino Literacy Night to teach Spanish-speaking parents how to help their children learn to read by incorporating their culture.

Honored as staff member of the year is Leigh Ann Armendariz, who one year ago was tasked to develop a program at Tarrant County College. She previously worked at programs at North Side High School in Fort Worth and the KEYS Learning Center, an alternative high school in the Hurst-Euless-Bedford schools.

Jessamy Brown